I got out of my bed and slipped into his, behind him. I smoothed back his hair and kissed his neck. "I love you, but you can't solve all my problems, babe. I have to learn how to do shit on my own. You have no idea how much I appreciate the fact you want to protect me and field shit coming my way before it hits me, but you can't. What kind of partner can I be to you if I can't figure out how to live on my salary? I don't want to rely on you to take care of me financially. Every other way, hell, I'm on board. Financially, I have to draw the line."
He turned over, and I saw the tears in his eyes. God, it broke my fucking heart. "Andre, baby…"
"No, hear me out. I won't try to force anything on you that would make you feel as if I was trying to cuckold you because I’d never do that to you. I understand you’re becoming your own man, and I support you. I’m still doing the same and the lessons we’re learning will help us in our future.
“I refuse to sit back and watch the man I love doing without staples, Colt. If you run short, you have to promise me you'll come to me before you do without anything. You have to promise me, Colton." I leaned forward and kissed him gently, drawing his tongue into my mouth and swirling it with mine. He was so fucking amazing, and I loved him more than anything. It was another happy moment for me. They were coming more frequently, and I welcomed everyone.
I pulled back. "I promise. Now, go to sleep. I'll wake you up in a way I know you love," I teased.
He laughed. "How about you put me to sleep that way? I think I'm a little keyed up, and well, it's your fault, after all." I snaked my hand down to his pajama pants and pulled them down, and then I went down.
I swirled my tongue and sucked him into my throat. His moans of "Fuck Colton" were music to my ears. When he released into my mouth, I had a smile on my face. I tucked him back into his pj's and kissed his forehead after he fell asleep. I whispered to him how much I loved him before I got out of the twin and fell asleep on my own, ignoring my aching cock. It’s my fault, after all.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The Road to Freedom is Truth
A loud clap of thunder woke me. I looked out of my bedroom window, just in time for the flash to light up the woods behind my mom's little house. I hated fucking storms, and well, Andre was there in the bed across from me, so…
I got up and walked over to his bed, kissing his cheek. "Hmmm. Colton." I was happy to hear that.
"Babe, scoot," I whispered into his ear. Without opening his eyes, Andre moved over, and I climbed in, grabbing him before he fell off the other side. I enveloped him in my arms and kissed the back of his head.
"Mmm," he hummed as he laced his fingers with mine resting on his chest. The thunder rolled and the lightning cracked, but I felt safe. I looked at the closet in my room, knowing what it held inside. I shuddered a bit and held Andre tighter to my chest, drawing strength from him.
"Colton?" Andre whispered.
"The one and only," I whispered back as I clutched his hand when a roll of thunder hit again.
"Can I turn around?" he asked quietly. I released him immediately.
"Too close for comfort?" I asked apprehensively as lightning lit up the sky. He stiffened a bit and wedged his leg between mine after he turned.
"I hate storms." He burrowed into my chest, resting a hand on my hip.
I wrapped my arms around him. "I'll keep you safe," I whispered as he fell asleep again. It was cramped, but it was absolutely perfect.
I couldn't get back to sleep because I was trying to plan how I would get some time away from everyone so I could have my session with Eve and take care of other business. It was like planning a fucking invasion, but finally, I had a half-assed idea, so I felt better and dozed off.
I felt a warm tongue on my neck, and I smiled. I opened my eyes and saw Andre, wild haired and smiling at me. "I'd have woken you another way, but I didn't think you'd be ready for that surprise quite yet, so I've been kissing you until I finally got you to open your eyes." I wished to fuck he could wake me up with what I'm sure was a blow job, but I was sure I'd have freaked out and probably hurt him. Explaining that to my mother wasn't anything I wanted to do.
"What time is it?" I whispered.
"Nine-thirty," he announced after he checked his phone.
"Fuck. Well, I'll just have to think about my grandma in a bikini to get rid of the boner. There's not enough time to take care of it now," I complained. He chuckled.
He reached under the pillow and pulled out a bottle of lube. "Pull our pants down. I think we've got a little bit of time, don't you?" Well, it’s not like we have a reservation for breakfast.
I did as he suggested, and when he wrapped his slick hand around both of our hard cocks, I sighed in pure joy. "Damn, that feels good," I whispered the obvious. He licked my bottom lip, and when I opened my mouth, he stuck his tongue inside as the two of us began thrusting slowly against each other in his slick fist.
I slipped my left hand up his t-shirt and pinched his nipple between my thumb and forefinger as we kissed. His moans were matching mine as we both fucked his fist. I moved my right hand down to join his and we both sped up our pumping and it felt really fucking great. So great in fact, much too soon I was about to come and I didn't have the control to slow down the speeding train.
"Fuck, Dre, I'm close," I whispered as I pulled away and looked into his bright green eyes.
"Me too, Colton." We continued to thrust against each other, and just as I was about to shoot off, his mouth covered mine. I felt his cock pulsing against mine and I let go as well. We were going to have a hell of a mess on our hands…ha ha…but it was definitely worth it. Walking around all day with a hard-on wasn't up my alley, though likely, it would happen anyway.
"Goddamn, I love feeling your skin against mine. Who's going to shower first? I assume Miss Chelle would frown on us sharing, even in the name of ecology?" he teased.
"I wish. Anyway, I need a favor. I need to get away from my mom to have my session with Eve." Andre laughed as he got up from the bed because he had a more colorful nickname for Evelyn Brownley, and it wasn’t one I wanted to let slip if I wasn’t paying attention to what I was saying to the woman. I liked her and she had been helpful to me. I’d chastise him over his word-choice another time.
He retrieved his t-shirt from the floor and tossed it to me to clean up the mess on my hand and chest after he took care of his own. I pulled the covers back and pulled up my pajama pants, hopping out on my side. I checked the bed to be sure we hadn't made a mess of the sheets, and I quickly made the bed while he recovered clothes from his bag.
"What's your favor?" Watching him move around without a shirt had me unable to form coherent sentences.
I snapped out of it when he laughed again. "I'm going to invite our friends over tonight and Mom's going to complain about not having enough food. Would you volunteer to go to the store for her with Nick? I need to take her car to get it serviced this afternoon so I'll do that while I have my session with Eve."
All I could think about was the tangled web of lies I was weaving, but if I told him what I was planning to do, he'd insist on coming with me. What I was going to do was something I believed I needed to do alone.
My plan was for Andre and Nick to go to the store for Mom, and I'd track down the Sheriff and talk to him about some shit. I trusted him because I’d known the man for several years. Based on his friendship with my dad back in the day, I knew he'd believe me. Whether there was a way to prove my accusations, well, he'd be able to tell me that as well.
Since Mom had already taken her car to get it serviced a few days prior, Andre wouldn't get suspicious…I hoped. I just needed to get Herb to meet me at the station without saying anything to Bryana about it.
After we'd both dressed for the day and I'd called Lance and told him to invite everyone over to Mom’s house, Dre and I went downstairs to find Nick and my mom chatting about Damon. "He's six-six? You must have to climb a ladder to kiss him," Momma teased.
Nick gigg
led and then looked our way. "Well, finally. Miss Chelle's been thinning the gravy for ten minutes."
I laughed at my friend, but I helped Momma dish up scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, and her sausage gravy with the leftover biscuits from the previous night. I poured coffee and juice, and we all sat down for breakfast. We tucked in, and for a few minutes, there was no talking.
After my first helping, I cleared my throat as I filled my plate again. "Momma, our friends who came out with us were going to have a party down at the river tonight, but with the storm, it's canceled. I know you invited some of your friends over, but is it okay if I invite some of mine? Lance is here with his boyfriend, and Dre's good friend, Chip and his sister came out as well," I offered, remembering how much she loved Lance.
"Sure. How many?" she asked, looking a little concerned.
"Well, um, let's see. I'm sure you invited Herb and Bryana, the Burns’, and then your friends from work. There's Lance, Juan, Chip, Lula, and us three. Maybe my friend Brad, if he can get a ride out from Vancouver?" I saw her doing the math, and when she had a count, she sighed.
"Well, it'll be cozy, but sure. What the hell? I'm gonna need you to go get another pork roast and fire up the smoker. The oven isn't big enough to cook two roasts," she ordered.
"Yeah, we'll take care of getting the extra food. I think Andre was going to show Nick around town anyway, so I'll take care of the food. Thanks, Momma." She began clearing the table, and the three of us grabbed our coats and went outside to begin hanging the Christmas lights.
After I got Andre and Nick started, I went inside and grabbed my laundry bag to take it to the back porch to start a load of whites. Momma was in the kitchen making sides, and when she saw me, she laughed. "Just leave it. I'll do it between dishes. This is gonna end up more like a cookout than a dinner, you know."
"Hey, nobody's gonna care as long as you make it. I'll go start the smoker so you can get the roast on, and as soon as we finish, I'll go to the store. Make me a list,” I ordered. She nodded and went to the drawer to grab a pad and paper.
I rushed to the back yard to start the smoker, adding the Applewood chips to water. After I saw it had caught, I went to the front where Andre was on the ladder with Nick feeding him the lights. "How's it going?" I asked.
"You seem to have conveniently disappeared," Andre complained. I laughed. He hated putting up lights.
"I’ll tell you what. I won't ask you to help me take them down after the holidays." That reminded me he'd be in California for a month and I'd be in Unionville. That was going to suck massively.
He laughed. "I'll be taking all that shit down at my parents’ house as well. How is this break going to work, anyway?" he asked.
Nick looked at me and cocked an eyebrow. "What?" I asked him to stall having to tell Andre I had no idea.
"I was just curious how you're going to survive? Damon has games so he doesn't get much time off at Christmas. I've adjusted to it over the years and I actually travel over the break to be there for him. How will you, Little Miss Lovesick, handle the separation?" It was a very good question.
"Honestly, I don't know," I whispered. Just then, Andre climbed down the ladder.
"I gotta pee. I'll be back." He pecked my lips and walked inside. I grabbed another strand of lights and went to the front porch to begin wrapping them around the handrails and spindles.
Nick walked up with another set and started helping me. "Colton, I've been very patient and kept my mouth closed since Halloween. I didn't ask you what happened to my bedding after you said you spilled red Kool-Aid on it and you replaced it. I've also overlooked the fact we sleep with a chair wedged under the doorknob every night. I've also held off asking why you're still awake when I go out with some of our friends from QuAC and you don't want to go. I thought you liked it."
The Queer Activism Coalition was something I'd enjoyed getting involved with before… Since…well, I didn't do much of anything. I knew I had to tell him something because he was a very dear friend to me and I didn't want to lose him.
I stopped what I was doing and walked over to him, taking his hand to stop his work. "Look, I can't talk about it yet but when I can I'll tell you everything, okay? I will tell you this right now. You need to be very careful when you walk around campus alone. There are people out there who aren't nice and prey upon guys like us. I really don't want to say anything more right now, but please, be careful."
I engulfed him in a hug and when I felt his hands on my back through my coat, I fought the urge to push him away. Becoming accustomed to innocent touches again without allowing the panic to set in was on my priority list. Thankfully, he nodded and hugged me tightly just as Andre walked back outside.
"I leave you two alone for a minute and you toss me aside for the little hottie. Well, I like that," Andre teased.
Nick giggled as I released him. "Hey, Dude, when you've got it, you've got it. Now, I've gotta pee." Nick hurried inside, and Andre looked at me for an explanation.
I pulled him into my body and kissed him gently. When I pulled back, I squeezed his ass, but I didn't let him go. "He asked me what was going on with me. He reminded me of some strange behavior he's witnessed from me and my absence from participating in activities with QuAC. I told him I couldn't talk about it yet, but when I could, I'd tell him everything.
"You know better than to think I'd let you get away, babe. I love you," I whispered as I kissed him again as the front door opened. I thought it was Nick, but the giggle informed me it was my mother.
I pulled away to see her smiling with a list in her hands. "I didn't know giving the neighbors a show was part of putting up my Christmas lights," she teased.
Andre backed away, his face bright red, and I knew mine was just as red. "Sorry, Momma."
She laughed again. "Don't be. I'm happy to see you're happy. Now, here's the list. I'd guess you're just about done. Nick volunteered to stay and help me cook, so you two go to the store." Fuck, that’s not the plan at all.
I knew I would never be able to keep my errands a secret from Andre, and considering he was my boyfriend, I was pretty sure his mom…a psychiatrist by trade…would advise against it. "We will. We'll finish up really quick and we'll get going. The wood chips are soaking so have Nick put 'em in the tray about ten minutes before you're ready to put on the meat. It might take us a while," I told her.
"No problem." Momma went back inside the house and we went back to work. After we were finally finished, I took Andre’s hand after we stowed the empty tub in the garage before we moved the reindeer to the yard and plugged them into the heavy-duty cord stowed with the lights. I stood back and looked at our handiwork, knowing Daddy always did it better, but I was grateful for the help, nonetheless.
"I need to tell you something. Let's go up to my room." He nodded and we went inside, hearing Nick and my mom in the kitchen chatting away as if they were old friends.
We quietly made our way upstairs, and I could see Andre was concerned about something. I went to my closet and dug around, finding the trash bag I'd hidden there the weekend Lance and I had come to Unionville for my dad's memorial service.
"What's that?" Andre asked.
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I need to go talk to Bryana's dad. This is Nick's bedding and the tape that was over my mouth, along with other stuff. I need to know from Herb if there's any chance this stuff could be used to try to prove what happened to me."
Andre sat down on the bed and looked at me. "You're going to tell him what happened?" He was quiet with his question, and I wondered why.
I sat down next to him. "I was going to go by myself, but it occurred to me that the smarter thing to do would be to take my boyfriend with me because I'm going to be a fucking wreck when it's over and I might need the moral support.
"I'm sorry I considered trying to do this alone. I'm used to being the person others depend on. It's kinda hard to ask someone for help since I’m not used to it. I believe half of my ‘getting better�
� is dependent upon allowing people in my life to be there to help me with love and support. Namely, you." I took his hand and held it while he considered what I'd said.
He looked up at me through tear-filled eyes, but he smiled. "Thank you, Colton. I'd have understood if you wanted to do it alone, but I can't say I wouldn't have been hurt a little. We're a couple, and I'm here to support you in any way you need, sometimes whether you like it or not." He chuckled as I reached up and stopped the two tears rolling down his cheeks.
I laughed. "I'm not saying I won't bitch, but I'll always appreciate it. So, shall we? I need to go talk to Herb first so the food's still cold when we bring it home." He nodded and grabbed the bag, slipping outside with it while I went to the kitchen.
"We're leaving. Anything else?" I asked.
"Oh, goodness. Hang on." Momma hurried off and came back a minute later with her debit card.
"What's this?" I asked.
Momma laughed. "How do you think you'll pay for it, Mr. No-Money-In-My-Pocket? We'll be talking about that later, Colton. Now, scoot and get that roast back here." I kissed her cheek and hurried out the front door.
I got into Andre's car and saw him smile at me. "How's your mom's car going to get serviced?"
"I lied. I'm sorry. She took it last week."
"Thank you for telling me the truth, now. Don't lie to me, Colton. That's a deal breaker." I nodded, knowing he was telling me the truth and swearing to myself I'd never lie to him again.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Coca Cola® and Compassion
"Colton, it's good to see you, son. I remember you. Dupree, right?" Herb greeted us when we stopped at the station after searching around for his car. We drove by his house first and when it wasn't there, we checked the diner and then the Sheriff’s Office. Thankfully, that's where we found him.
"Yes, sir. Andre. My father was the Chief of Surgery at the hospital before we moved to California. It's good to see you again." Andre extended his hand and Herb shook it, opening the small gate and inviting us back to his office. Andre carried the bag and followed us. Once we were in his office, Herb asked us to sit down and leaned back in his chair, eyeing me expectantly.
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